The royals greeted a string of famous faces including Morgan's co-presenter Susanna Reid and Eamonn Holmes, who was recently awarded an OBE in the New Year Honours list, before they headed to a reception to honour Charles.

The Prince, who has been a patron of the society since 1997, was presented with the RTS Gold medal - the society's highest accolade - in recognition of his support over the years.

He joked he would wear the prize "around his neck" for his next visit and praised the "impressive" members of the RTS, telling them he was "proud" to be a patron.

He told a room of 200 guests including television executives, MPs and students: "I know how vital it is to maintain ... the quality of what we produce, which is quite remarkable, I think.

"If you go around the world and sometimes watch television in other places, that's what makes you realise, more than anything else, how brilliantly professional it is in this country."

The couple topped off the event with the cutting of a gold-frosted cake.

Prince Charles, patron of the Royal Television Society, cuts cake w/Duchess of Cornwall during a visit to the ITV studios in central London pic.twitter.com/W3SSxj3wyo